Device for rotating a cylindrical article to a predetermined position



Nov'. 23 1926.

A. J. PERCHARD DEVICE FOR ROTATING A CYLINDRICAL ARTICLE TO A RREDE'I'ERMINED POSITION Filed June 30, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR 41.5?50 Jeff/ 4E0 ATTORNEY Nov. 23 1926. 1,608,119

A. J. PERCHARD DEVICE FOR ROTATING A GYLINDRICAL ARTICLE TO A PREDETERIINED POSITION Filed June 30, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOR A'LFesaJ/ i'ecmqzo ATTORNEY Nov. 23 1926. 1,608,119

A. J. PERCHARD DEVICE FOR ROTATING A CYLINDRICQAL ARTICLE TO A PREDETERMINED POSITION Filed June 50, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 HIM;

INVENTOR ALFKED ff ec/meo ATTORNEY Patented N... 23, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALFRED J. PERCHARD, OI PERTH AMBOY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB TO CHESEBROUGH MANUFACTURING COMPANY (CONSOLIDATED), OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORA- TION 0] NEW YORK.

'DEVICE Ion nora'rmo A mrmnnnronr. ARTICLE TO A rnnnmznumnn rosrrion.

a pnmmn am June so, 1926. Serial No. 119,784.

This invention relates to a new ordinproved device for bnngin a bottle or similar' article to a redeterm hed position, and is designed pre erably for use 1n con unction with a labeling machine.

The device according to the present 1nvention is intended to receive a bottle or similar article from any suitable feedlng mechanism, to rotate it to a predetermlned position whatever may be its position on ts original introduction, and then deliver 1t, in such predetermined, corrected or rectified position, to a labeling machlne, for example, in which a label or labels can be attached always in a pro-selected position. Uniformity in labeling is thus obtained and this automatically. b

The device is articularly designed to opcrate upon bott es provided on their outer surface with a projection or pro ections,

which can conveniently be in the orm of p identifying letters or words, such as the name of the manufacturer of the roduct contained in the bottle or of the bott e itself as is usual in trade today, and means are provided whereby each bottle can be rotated until it reaches a predetermined posltion at which it can be stopped by a device adapted to engage one of said letters. It 1s then ejected from the device in such rectified position for any desired subsequent operation.

With the above and other objects in new the invention consists in the device and in the novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings F-igure 1 is a perspective view of the device.

Figure 2 is an end view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal view, that is to say, talren at a right angle to Fig. 2, partly in section, and,

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of'a detail.

In the several figures of the drawings, the numerals 1 and 2 indicate respectively side members which form a housing and act as a support for the various elements of the device to be hereinafter described. These side members also serve as the means whereby the device can be connected to the machine in conjunction with which it is to op crate and such members are connected at their opposite extremities by spacing membets 3 and 4 which also serve as a further means of connection to-the said machine.

Within the housing 12 is journaled, on spindles 5 and 6, apair of rollers 7 and 8 preferably. disposed in the same horizontal plane. They can be conveniently made of wood and are each provided towards one end with a groove 9 adapted to receive an endless belt 10. As will be seen more particularly from Fig. 3 this belt passes round .a. pulley l2 fixed to a countershaft 14 of the machine in conjunction with which the present device is to operate, then up over the grooved roller 7, down around a tensioned Iooved wheel 16, up over the other groovet roller 8 back to the ulley 12.

Between the pulley 12 and the rollers 7 and 8 respectively can be conveniently dis- .osecl idlers 18, mounted on stub shafts 20 which further guidethe belt and enhance its smooth operation.

The belt tensioning device in the present instance comprises the wheel 16 above mentioned which is free to rotate on a stub shaft 22 projecting laterally fromone end of a lever 24, which lever is pivoted on the same stub shaft 20 as is that idler 18 located adjacent the roller 8. To the opposite end of said lever is-connected one end of a tensioned spring 26 the other end of which is secured preferably to a pin 28 projecting from the side wall 2 of the device.

Also secured to the countershaft v14 is a cam wheel 30 against one side of which is adapted to ride a cam roller 32 laterally disposed with relation to one end of a lever 34 the other end of'which is secured to a spindle 36 rotatable in bearings 38 projecting inwardly from the side wall 1 of the device. To said spindle 36 is also secured an upwardly-projecting arm 40 forked at its upper end and adapted to engage one end of a shouldered sleeve 42 free to slide, against a spring 44, on a rod 46 carried at its ends in the side members 1 and 2.

From the opposite end ofsaid sleeve, there extends longitudinall of the device and in between the side wal 1 and-the adjacent ends of the rollers 7 and 8, a brake bar 48 which, at the times desired, is caused to bear against the said ends of saidrollers and prevent their rotation. The cam roller 32 is held against the wheel 30 by means of a 5 ring 50 tensioned between the lever any other convenient fixed part of the device or machine co-operatin there with. The roller 32 is adapted to drop, the times desired into a depression 51 formed in one face of the cam wheel 30.

Above the roller 8 is a third roller 52 which is carried in a rectangularly-shaped frame; the side members 54 of which are adapted to pivot on a pin 56 extending between the side walls 1 and 2 of the device. The said roller 52 is pressed down upon an article being operated upon by the device by a ten'sioned spring 58, one end of which is attached to an end member 60 of the rectangular frame and the other to a bolt 62 which also serves the purpose of retaining the side members 1 an 2 in proper spaced relation.

The side members 1 and 2 are respectively provided with openings 64 and 66 through which a bottle 68 or other article coming from any suitable feeding mechanism, such as a chute 70, can be fed into the device to there be operated upon, it being noted that such openings are so disposed that the bottle will enter into the space provided between the three rollers 7, 8 and 52.

The feeding of the bottles into the device is preferably effected by means of a. kicker carried by any suitable part of the machine in conjunction with which the device is to operate and comprises a lever 71 fulcrumed at 72 and provided at one end with a hammer-head 74 and at the opposite end with a roller 76 adapted to ride against a cam wheel 78 fixed to the counter shaft 14. A tension spring 79 secured to the lever 71 and to any suitable adjacent fixed part retains the roller 76 in contact with the cam wheel 78.

To a downwardly-extending projection 82 on the side member 1 is pivoted one end of an arm 84 to the other end of which is pivoted a ta pet rod 86 which extends upwardly into the device and at its u per end is provided with a head 88 provi ed with an upwardly directed lip 90. Said lip is adapted to contact with and operate a finder 92 having a knife ed e 94 which edge engages the surface of the ottle or other article being operated on. The finder 92 is secured to a carrier arm 96 free to oscillate on a pivot 98 adjustably carried in an arcuate slot 100 out in the side wall 1. The finder is always held in contact with the lip 90 by contacts with a roller 116 carried by the arm 84.

.The operation of the device hereinbefore set forth may be described as follows On the countershaft 14 being set in motion, the rollers 7 and 8 will be rotated in the same direction by the belt 10 operated by the pulley 12 and a bottle comin down the chute into the ath of the icker will be projected by t e movement of the head 74 through the opening 66 in the side wall 2 between said rollers and the roller 52 and will be rotated by frictional contact therewith.

At the same time as the said bottle commences to rotate or just subsequent thereto, the cam 114 will contact with the roller 116 and raise the carrier arm 96 and its attached knife-edge 94, thus lifting the latter from contact wlth the outer surface of the bottle. This lifting is continued for a short time, the bottle of course revolving meanwhile, and when the roller 116 leaves the cam 114 the lifting will cease and the knifeedge again contact with the bottle, which latter will revolve until the said knife-edge meets the first letter of the lettering against which the knife-edge will catch and the further rotation of the bottle thereby prevented, it being now in the desired pre-determined position.

It should be noted that the under face of the knife-edge 94 is beveled (see 95, Fig. 1). This is to take care of the case in which a bottle is introduced with its lettering beneath the knife-ed e and ofthe case in which the knife-ed e drops, after being raised, on to such dettering. In both of such cases, the said edge will ride over thelettering and thus the bottle will only be stopped by the engagement of the knifeedge with the first of the letters of such lettering.

There should also be noted the case in which a bottle is introduced with the first letter of its letterin just in front of the knife-edge; the kni e-edge will catch and the revolution of the bottle cease immediately. This however will not be the final position of the bottle as the cam 114 has not yet had time to-perform its function of raising the knife-edge; when it does the knife-edge will be disengaged from said first letter, the bottle will be rotated again and finally be brought to rest in the desired rectified osition on the subsequent engagement 0 the knife-edge with the first letter.

At or just after a bottle has been brought ion to its rectified position the cam roller 32 dropsinto the depression 51 in the cam wheel 30 which causes the application of the brake bar 42 to the rollers 7 and 8.

Immediately upon or. just after the application of the brake bar, the kicker again operates to project a further bottle into the device and this projection causes the first bottle to be driven out of the device in its rectified, position by the second bottle into a receiver 120 carried by an arcuate strip of spring metal 122 adjustably clamped to a holder 124 which in turn is secured to the side wall 2 of the device as by a nut and bolt 126. The receiver 120 is made of sheet metal and in cross section conforms approximately to a semi-circle; at each of its ends it has a downwardly projecting lug or car 128. The receiver serves the purpose of catching the bottle on its projection from the device, of preventing its rotation from the rectified or corrected position given it in the device and of handing or passing it on to the usual grippers of the co-operating labeling machine in which of course the labels can then be applied in a predetermined position with relation to the lettering on the bottle.

In order..to permit of adjustment of the receiver 120, its carrier 122 is engaged by an adjusting screw 128 carried in a holder 130 clamped in the arcuate .slot 100 by a bolt and nut 132.

The brake bar 48 is applied to the rollers 7 and 8 only for such period of time as will permit the rectified bottle to be projected from the device and the subsequent bottle to take its place, and is then released.

During the time that the brake bar is applied to the rollers 7 and 8, the drive being continuous from the countershaft 14, the belt 10 will slip this being allowed for by the tension device 16.

In accordance with the provisions of the Patent Statute, I have described the principle of my invention, together with the apparatus which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof, but I desire it understood that my invention is not confined to the particular form of apparatus herein shown and described, the same being merely illustrative, and that the invention can be carried out in other ways without departing from the spirit of my invention, and, therefore, I claim broadly the right to employ all equivalent instrumentalities coming within the scope of the appended claims, and by means of which objects of my invention are attained, and the new results accomplished, as herein set forth, as it is obvious that the particular embodiments herein shown and described are only some that can be employed to attain these objects and accomplish these results.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A device for rotating a cylindrical article to a predetermined position comprismg means for introducing the article into the device, means for rotating it about its longitudinal axis, means for bringing it to rest in said predetermined position, and means given point, means or ejecting it from the device, and means for retaining it in such position whilst being so ejected.

4. A device for rotatin a cylindrical object provided with a pro ection to a redetermined position, comprising rollers or rotating said object, means adapted to contact with said projection to bring the object to rest in said predetermined position, a brake for stopping said rollers on such predetermined position'bein reached, and means for ejecting the object irom the device in such position. x

5. A device for rotatin a cylindrical object. provided with a pro ection, to a redetermined position. comprising rollers or rotating said object, means adapted to contact with said projection to bring the object to rest in said predetermined position, a brake for stopping said rollers on such predetermined position being reached, means for ejecting the object from the device, and means for retaining it in its rectified position whilst being so e ected.

6. Means for recti ying the position of a cylindrical object having a plurality of projcctions on its surface comprising rollers for supporting and rotating said" object, a knife-edge so positioned as to stop the rotation of the object only when it contacts with the first of the plurality of said projections, a brake for stopping the further rotation of the rollers when such contact has been made, and means for ejecting and guiding the object from the device in its rectified osition.

7. Means for rectifying the positron of a cylindrical object having a plurality of projections disposed about its circumference comprising rollers for supporting and rotating the object. a knife-edge so positioned as to contact with the first of the plurality of projections to stop the rotation of the object in the rectified position but to slide over the remaining projections, and means for ejecting the object from the device in such rectified position.

8. Apparatus for bringing a cylindrical object, having a plurality of projections disposed about its circumference, to a predetermined position, comprising rollers for supporting and rotating the object, a kn 1feedge, means for raising said knife-ed e ust aiter said object begins to revolve an later for dropping. it into contact with the surface of said object to engage a projection and stop the revolution of t e ob ect in the redetermined position and a beveled underace on saidknife-edge permittin the object to continue to revolve shoul it dro on any but the leading projection of sai plurality of projections.

9. Apparatus for bringing a cylindrical object, having a plurality of projections disposed about its circumference, to a predetermined position, comprising rollers for supporting and rotating the object, a knifeedge, means for raising said knife-edge just after said object begins to revolve and later for dropping-it into contact with the surface of said object to engage 'a projection and stop the revolution of the object in the predetermined position, a brake adapted to ring said rollers to rest on the cessation of rotation of the object, and means for ejectin the object from the apparatus in its recti ed position.

10. Apparatus for rotating a cylindrical object, having a plurality ofprojections, to a predetermined position comprising a pair of rollers for supporting and rotating said object, an endless belt driving said rollers, a tensioning device inserted in said belt line a finder adapted to be raised just after said object commences to rotate and later to be dropped into contact with the surface of said object to engage a projection and stop the rotation of the object in the predetermined position, a beveled underface on said finder permitting the object to continue to revolve should it dro on any but the leading projection of sai lurality of pro'ections, 'a tappet rod adapted to operate sai finder, a cam. for operatin said rod, a brake adapted to stop said ro ers on the cessation of rotation of the object, a cam operating said brake, and means for ejecting the object from the apparatus after it has been brought to its predetermined position, said means also acting to introduce the object into the apparatus.

11. Apparatus for rotating a cylindrical' object provided with a plurality of projec tions to a predetermined position comprising rollers for supporting and rotating sai object, means adapted to contact with the leading projection ofrsaid plurality of projections to stop the object in such redetermined position, and means adapte to both introduce the objects into the apparatus and to eject them therefrom after they have attained the predetermined position.

12. Apparatus for rotating a cylindrical object provided with a plurality of projections to a predetermined position comprising rollers for supporting and rotating said object, means adapted to contact with the leading projection of said plurality of projections to stop the object in such predetermined position, means for'ejecting the object from the apparatus after it has been brought to the predetermined position, and means for retaining it in said predetermined position whilst it is being so ejected, said means comprising an approximately semicircular receiver, a dependin lug at each extremity of said receiver, anti spring means carrying and holding said receiver in the path of ejection of the object.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ALFRED J. PERCHARD. 

